Instruments of Darkness (Crowther and Westerman #1) By Imogen Robertson
I love an intricate plot, and, without sounding debauched? Multiple murders. Throw in murders committed over more than one generation? Yes, that will do it. I'm giving this book 4.5 stars, despite some minor missteps, for sucking me in, for wanting more by this author, and more from the characters, Crowther (mysterious gentleman anatomist) and his side kick Westerman (Commodore's no-nonsense, handsome, wife) with their on-page chemistry (did I just coin a term? Probably not), and for readability. Additional thumbs up for more than one villain, all with varying degrees of sympathetic stories. Minor missteps: women in this book are decidedly too modern, too bold, for the late 18th century (Georgian) of my knowledge - it felt as though perhaps it should have been set in the late 19th century. 300 Maybe 3.5 stars. Enjoyed the main characters and the convoluted plot, but the jumping around between storylines especially in the beginning felt disjointed. I had to go back and read a chapter once or twice before I understood why it was important. And then there were things that seemed odd to me. In 1780, would a married upper class woman really be able to spend a lot of time with an unmarried man without raised eyebrows or scandal, in a small village would multiple victims of violence or suspicious deaths really be chalked up as random or accidents?
Ok, it did keep me interested and I wanted to see how everything would come together. Will I read the next one, perhaps.
300 While Commodore Westerman was away at sea, his wife discovered a body on their land. With one part common sense and a second part curiosity, she approached the solitary Mr. Gabriel Crowther for assistance in identifying the unknown man.
Crowther was a mid-fifties single gentleman who preferred his own company to others. He delved in science and preferred clinical anatomical research. With the honest Mrs. Westerman, he found his spirit and intellect well-matched and a friendship of sorts developed.
Harriet was the mother of a little boy and a baby girl but she had a thirst for learning. She was limited in ways because of her gender but still had some freedom because she was in charge of the estate while her husband was away. Crowther assumed she was in her early thirties. Harriet’s eighteen year old sister -the thoughtful Miss Rachel Trench- lived with the family, too. Instruments of Darkness was what Rachel named Crowther’s ‘knives’ he used in his examinations.
What started as an innocent search for a killer morphed into a period thriller that included locating a will, a signet ring and concealed letters. No one was immune from a tragic death.
The author used two timelines -1775 and 1780- that affected the narrative’s pacing. The story moved between three distinct plots. At times, it was bothersome and slowed my reading. It worked for and against my enjoyment of the mystery.
Though I can only award Instruments of Darkness three stars, I liked Crowther, Harriet and Rachel. I am also hoping to see other secondary characters in future stories. Because of this, I will read the next one. 300 Just love historical English mysteries and this first novel is a worthy addition to that genre. 300 First Sentence: Gabriel Crowther opened his eyes.
Harriet Westerman, wife of a navy commander, has given up sailing with her husband to raise their family and provide a home for her sister at Caverly Park in West Sussex. When she finds the body of a man whose throat has been slit, she summons help from anatomist Gabriel Crowther. The victim has a ring bearing the crest of neighboring Thornleigh Hall. Was the man Alexander Thornleigh, the missing heir to the Earl of Sussex?
London music shop owner Alexander Adams is murdered. Before dying, he tells his daughter to find a box hidden under the counter. Was Alexander the missing heir and how can his children be removed from the city in spite of a killer and the anti-Catholic Gordon Riots?
Wonderful characters make this book a treat to read. Jane Austin fans will quickly associate Harriet Westerman with Mrs. Croft, the captain’s wife from “Pursuasion.” She has traveled, seen war, is outspoken and not to be put off. Her younger sister, Rachel Trench, is “Jane Eyre,” in her attraction to the war-wounded Hugh Thornleigh, younger brother of the missing Alexander and the Mr. Rochester of our story. Gabriel Crowther is a scientist, and something of a recluse until being pulled into the investigation by Harriet and his own curious mind.
There are a lot of characters, including some real historical figures. It was occasionally is difficult to keep track of who is whom. However, they each played their part and added to the overall Gothic feel of the story.
Ms. Robertson convincingly transported me to Georgian England in sight, sound, dialogue appropriate to the period and historical fact. I had not known of the Gordon Riots until now. She also included a perspective of the American Revolution from the viewpoint of a British soldier.
There is a lovely, Gothic feel to this book, but it was not perfect. Happily, in spite of identifying the villains fairly soon, the motive remained a secret until the end. Although story did feel over-long, I was completely involved and never found myself skipping through it.
The book was engrossing and suspenseful, with interesting historical information. The different threads of the plot were brought together well in a slightly overly dramatic fashion.
The most important question is whether I would read another book by this author. The answer is a definite “yes,” and it’s already on order.
INSTRUMENTS OF DARKNESS (His Mys-Gabriel Crowther/Harriet Westerman-England-1780) – G+
Robertson, Imogen – 1st in series
Headline, ©2009, UK Hardcover – ISBN: 9780755348398
[image error] 300
Daphne du Maurier meets CSI in this exhilarating debut Thornleigh Hall, seat of the Earl of Sussex, dominates its surroundings. Its heir is missing, and the once vigorous family is reduced to a cripple, his whore and his alcoholic second son, but its power endures. Impulsive Harriet Westerman has felt the Hall???s menace long before she happens upon a dead man bearing the Thornleigh arms. The grim discovery cries out for justice, and she persuades reclusive anatomist Gabriel Crowther to her cause, much against his better judgement; he knows a dark path lies before those who stray from society???s expectations. That same day, Alexander Adams is killed in a London music shop, leaving his young children orphaned. His death will lead back to Sussex, and an explosive secret that has already destroyed one family and threatens many others. Instruments of Darkness (Crowther and Westerman #1)
This book would have gotten 5 stars from me if not for the revelation of WhoDunnit!! Let this be a lesson to authors. The first 5/6ths of the book were wonderful. A nicely intricate mystery set in the English countryside and London; involving missing heirs, blackmail, and so on. And a great time frame--1780--Not Regency!!
I really enjoyed our investigators and the apparent bad guy was appropriately slimy. But the revelations at the end(during the climactic confrontation)had me going WTF? Where did that come from??!!??
Here's hoping the next one has all the kinks ironed out. 300 6/9/15: Edited to mark spoilers, just in case.
Meh.
It should have been interesting. The plot elements were all there. It's set in 1780, so you have the backdrop of England fighting the colonial upstarts as well as unrest at home--specifically the Gordon Riots, which I hadn't heard of before, and normally that grabs me. But...meh. It didn't help that the introductory chapter interwove the two plots in a moderately confusing way and then continued jumping from one to another throughout the book AND THEN introduced a third storyline later on. It's set up as a murder mystery, but
On the other hand, leopards do tear apart one of the villains, so it wasn't a total loss. 300 This was a very enjoyable debut novel from a clearly talented new author, one which introduces a great new 'detective' duo in Gabriel Crowther and Harriet Westerman.
Set in England in the year 1780, the novel begins with the forward-thinking and feisty Westerman securing the help of the reclusive anatomist Crowther after discovering a murder victim on her lands. She suspects that someone at the neighbouring Thornleigh Hall estate has something to do with the murder and she also believes that things go on at Thornleigh Hall that have to be kept secret. On the same day, a man named Alexander Adams is murdered in his music shop in London. Are the two cases linked? So begins a convoluted, gothic murder mystery (a sort of Sherlock Holmes/CSI mash-up) involving several different plot strands with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing right up until the end.
This is a very character driven story and the leading duo of Crowther and Westerman are two of the most interesting new characters that I have read about in a long time. Harriet Westerman is clearly a woman ahead of her time. She is forward-thinking, impulsive, determined and doesn't suffer fools gladly. Despite being a woman of high social standing, she is also very down-to-earth and is not afraid to use her quick, and sometimes sarcastic wit. Gabriel Crowther is the complete opposite of Westerman. He is a recluse who would much rather keep his own company and absorb himself in his work as an anatomist than spend time with any of his neighbours. However, it is clear that he does have a past and Robertson keeps us hooked by throwing in little snippets of information throughout the book, although by the end he is still something of an enigma. I suspect that more will be revealed about him in the subsequent books involving these two characters. Westerman and Crowther work extremely well together and their separate character traits complement each other really well. Watching their relationship develop is one of the most intriguing parts of the whole novel and also provides the frequently dark storyline with an element of much needed humour.
The 18th century setting is extremely well researched and is brought vividly to life by Robertson. Through her descriptions, you can see, hear and smell all the aspects of 18th century life and really picture yourself as being right there in the middle of it all.
Now for the negatives. The plot is made up of three separate strands which weave together as the story unfolds. I found initially that it was slightly confusing in keeping track of who was who and in which sub plot they were involved in, although this did become clearer as time went on. I also personally felt that the third sub plot involving one of the heirs to Thornleigh Hall's experiences in the American Revolution/ War of Independence dragged on a bit at times. It was interesting and harrowing to read about but it could have been cut down a little bit in my opinion. I also found it quite easy to guess who the murderer was but their motives remained a mystery until the end so this did not affect my overall enjoyment that much at all.
Overall, this was a well-written historical mystery with sone exceptionally likeable characters and enough intrigue and suspense to keep you turning the pages. It was not perfect but it was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I am looking forward to reading Robertson's other books that also feature Crowther and Westerman. I highly recommend this book so settle down and enjoy. 300 2.5 stars.
What worked for me:
+ The mystery was good. It was intricate enough that all the twists weren't immediately obvious, although the main ideas were.
+ Harriet and Crowther were engaging detectives. I liked their personalities, which is always a good thing in a detective story.
+ The subplots worked for me: I can follow skipping around in time, if it's done well, and this was. I even liked the children, which I normally do not particularly enjoy in an adult murder mystery.
+ The villains were well done. I liked that there was a rationale behind their actions, instead of just well, they were evil.
What did NOT:
- The Georgian setting. What Georgian setting? With the exception of the mentions of the Gordon riots and the American Revolution, I would not have guessed at the time period used for the setting. It could honestly have been any historical time period.
- Harriet and Gabriel's partnership. I am pretty sure that in ANY historical era, a married (or not) woman spending so much time with another man (especially unmarried) who was not family would be a pretty big no-no. I WANTED to like them together, but I couldn't get behind it.
- A few anachronisms in the writing that were pretty glaring. Mostly the writing was unobtrusively historical or at least neutral, but I don't know about pro (eg., I know a pro when I see one) or kid (a kid like me).
- So, Lord Thornhill could
- Killing dogs. That pretty much ruined the book for me. I realize people did that back then, but I don't care to read about it, and definitely not in such lovingly explicit and graphic detail.
Ew. That poor dog, she was the REAL victim. 300 Tension builds from the moment Mrs Westerman, genteel proprietress of Caveley Park, forces her acquaintance on reclusive anatomist Gabriel Crowther, wealthy man of secrets and possessor of many strange and distasteful objects, in search of his help in dealing with the death of a stranger in her copse.
It doesn't let up. It ratchets up every time Mrs Westerman or Mr Crowther are on stage. There are flashbacks to Mrs Westerman's neighbor, Lord Hugh Thornleigh, in combat during the American conflict...these aren't immediately obviously relevant to the story, and I think I'd've recommended the author introduce them differently than her editor did, but have patience...and introduce us to Claver Wicksteed, then an Army procurement officer and now steward of Thornleigh, the seat of the Earls of Sussex. Then we meet the Countess of Sussex, and our central cast is complete.
The body count rises, as it must in a mystery, and the characters begin to see that they're engaged in a grisly gavotte around one central puzzle: How low can a human being sink, regardless of high birth, and how can justice seem so far from just?
Like all good mystery writers, Robertson takes us round the houses by changing the angle of view several times. She's very good at this. What seems awful becomes right and good; what seems reliably good stinks like old fish before she's done with us. Fear not: The wise and the just are rewarded! Just that they're also made to get dirty in the process.
There are first-novel issues with the book, of course, like the Parthenon being described as a round building in Rome (PANTHEON!) and the persistent misunderstanding of how one addresses Earls, Countesses, and their offspring (Earls are Lord {Name of earldom}, their wives Lady {Name of earldom} unless that countess is the daughter of a fellow earl or higher, in which case she's ALWAYS Lady {Firstname} no matter who she's married to, sons and heirs of earls are Viscounts and addressed as Lord {Name of viscounty even when very young, younger sons are Lord {Family name} and daughters of earls are Lady {Firstname} all their lives, etc etc). Most of this is the editor's fault. The author should be able to rely on him or her to catch these sorts of factual oopsies.
Still and all...the pleasures of reading this book are many, and *evil chortle* you'll all have to wait until at least 2011 to find out 'cause the book ain't available here yet! I borrowed mine from our own Suzanne/Chatterbox, so there nyah!
But it's recommended. Really and truly. Too good to miss. 300
